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Michigan Football Week 2 – QB J.J. McCarthy – Improving Every Single Day is My Obligation

9/3/22 Michigan 51 Colorado State 7
9/6/22 Week 2 Player Availability
9/10/22 Hawaii @ Michigan

Q:
JJ, just to clarify how did Jim breach the idea of the quarterback competition with you and Cade and what exactly did he tell you guys?

McCarthy:
Initially or after camp?

Q:
Both.

McCarthy:
Initially, he just kind of told both of us that the best player is going to play, and it’s open competition, and just go out there and be us and whatever happens happens. And after the fact, he just gave us the whole rundown of how he doesn’t have a clear, decisive decision on who’s going to be the guy. So he’s gonna give us opportunities in the first two games.

JJ McCarthy on how Jim Harbaugh told the QBs about his plan to alternate them as starters

Q:
How does this week different for you as far as the way the practice goes and how do you approach it?

McCarthy:
Nothing really differs. I mean, going right when I stepped in the door here, I was always prepared to be the guy, snap one, game one, whatever it was, and now it’s just having that reassurance that I’m going to be in there snap one. So it kind of clears all the worry and indecisiveness going into it, and it just builds more confidence honestly.

Q:
What is your confidence level going into this,

McCarthy:
Extremely, you know, I mean, being around guys, like we have here, and being around coaches, like we have here, they just fill you with uber confidence, and just I’ve always been a guy to have extreme confidence in myself, and just being around guys like that and being around coaches like that just amplifies it even more,

JJ McCarthy on uber confidence

Q:
Did feel yourself make a push in camp, and at what point do you feel like you could be the starter?

McCarthy:
I don’t necessarily feel like there was a certain time where I made a push, I just felt like it was constantly getting better every single day, getting 1 to 2 to 5% better every single day.

I was just so locked in on just myself and my improvement and getting back from this injury and all that…there was there was no like, direct okay, I’m ahead of him or anything like that. It was just, you know, I feel like I’m growing. I feel like I’m excelling with my guys. And it’s been like that constantly.

Improving every single day is my obligation

JJ McCarthy

Q:
As camp wound down and it got to be like maybe a day or two before coach informed you of what he wanted to do in week one and week two, how did you feel about what you had done your body of work in camp and did you feel like you had done enough to win the job?

McCarthy:
That decision is something that’s out of my control and I never really took into the thought process of, oh, I should be the guy, this is my job, like, I want it.

That’s not for me to decide, for me to decide what I’m doing every single day and how I’m improving every single day is my obligation. It has nothing to do with making that decision that I’m the man or anything like that.

JJ McCarthy Improving every day single day is my obligation

Q:
JJ, when you weren’t able to throw in the spring, was there any part of you that was worried that you wouldn’t have time or you wouldn’t have the opportunity to be in this position?

McCarthy:
Yeah, for sure those thoughts crept in but you know, I just had trust in Phil and the trainers and all the people I saw outside of here that if I just stuck to the process, God got my back. And I was going to be in the position I’m in today.

The media really doesn’t want us to like each other and we just kind of laugh at it. We take on that challenge and embrace it. It’s made us so much better as players and as human beings.

JJ McCarthy on his relationship with Cade McNamara

Q:
Do you feel like you’re 100% now?

McCarthy:
Yes, sir. Yeah. 110%.

Q:
How would you describe your relationship with Cade during this quarterback competition?

McCarthy:
It’s been awesome. I mean, what better way to have a guy that’s that intelligent, that motivated, that driven, and just be able to observe him every single day and be able to kind of just replicate some of the parts of his game that I can improve on my game.

It’s just been an honest blessing for both of us to be in this position that we’ve been in and just grow from each other. I mean, there’s so many, like outside voices that try to make us dislike each other in a way and we’ve kind of taken that to heart. And there was a couple practices that were like, man, the media really doesn’t want us to like each other and we just kind of laugh at it. We take on that challenge and embrace it. And it’s made us so much better as players and as human beings.

JJ McCarthy the media doesn’t want us to like each other

Q:
JJ, you just said you were always prepared to be the guy, this week you are the guy- what do you want to prove this week?

McCarthy:
Just everything that I’ve been trying to prove since I walked in the door here, that I can win football games for this team and I love every single one of my guys, love every single part of this university and just exuberate that just endlessly throughout the game.

Q:
We talked to Coach Harbaugh on spring he was explaining how you guys saw pretty much every opinion you could on your shoulder to make sure you were doing the right thing for the long term. I guess what was that process like? Did you ever come close to thinking, okay, I might need to have surgery on this?

McCarthy:
It was a long process but I want to say that first initially it was just like, let’s get the surgery, let’s get this figured out because I’ve never had any arm issues before.

I was so worried about just being right for the future, but after getting the right opinions after going to guys who’ve been in situations like this before, we had just came down to the perfect plan, which was just rehab it, let it come let it heal naturally and it worked out for the best.

Q:
And it was the labrum was that kind of what they thought it was?

McCarthy:
Yes, sir.

Q:
When you’re running the ball, how do you balance like trying to pick up extra yards and embracing contact and sometimes getting down to avoid some big hits?

McCarthy:
Yeah, that’s something I’ve been having to work on because I’m a hockey player in my background. So I love the contact. I mean, it’s coming down to the point where I’m selfish when I just go out there and try to get hit and all that because I got the team on my back and I got to be healthy for them. But that’s just been a huge part of like, as I’m getting more experienced in this running game, is being able to avoid those big hits and not avoid those injuries.

JJ McCarthy I love the contact

Q:
How much have you thought about making your first start?

McCarthy:
I haven’t thought about it too much to be honest with you. It’s just like, I’m always person that it’s gonna come naturally. Like no matter what it is, I’m always gonna be ready for it. I’m extremely just hell bent on being in the present moment and whatever happens happens

Q:
What’s it like playing in the Big House at night?

McCarthy:
I want to say it’s like, Friday Night Lights on steroids. I mean, it’s just no better feeling. You feel like you’re out there, just backyard Nazareth Academy, just with your boys having the best time in the world just after school. It’s amplified like crazy, just because of the scene that it’s in. But yeah, it just feels like Friday Night Lights.

Q:
Where do you feel like you’ve made your biggest improvements since you’ve arrived?

McCarthy:
Just overall experience, I really took that experience factor seriously when I actually lived it. Like being here for a whole year just does monumental amounts to my game. But I also feel like just reading different defensive coverages become instinctual now, and just understanding different keys on the defense that I could just look at to simplify the thought processes going into each snap and just another one was the running game, like being able to run the ball, avoid those hits, and add a couple of different tools to my bag to get away from defenders.

Q:
With a running aspect that you provide, how much do you think the offense changes when you’re in the game? And how much does Coach Weiss kind of enhance maybe that part of the game and what plays are available?

McCarthy:
For sure. Yeah, Coach Weiss, coming from the Ravens and being with Lamar, he has so much just wisdom and knowledge about that quarterback running game. I do feel like it adds a different dimension to our run game. It allows just more space for blocks, it allows the second level defenders to worry about me running the ball. So it does a lot for us. It just makes bigger holes, creates more space on the perimeter And yeah, it does very good things.

Q:
How much does it enhance the passing aspect of it?

McCarthy:
I feels like huge. I mean, anytime you can run the ball effectively, you’re going to be able to pass the ball effectively, so huge.

Q:
Jim said this week that you were running in four-five, is that faster than in previous years?

McCarthy:
To be honest with you like in high school, I was four-eights, I don’t know when it happened with Coach Herb but he got my speed down to like four-fives, four-fours, I want to say I’m four-fours, but we haven’t put it on time yet. But yeah, it just kind of came naturally, which is hard work and always doing the right things mechanic wise and yeah, just in order to get fast, you got to run fast. And we’ve been doing a lot of that here for sure.

Q:
Do you think it was any specific drills or training?

McCarthy:
I couldn’t tell you, I have no idea. It’s probably a combination of things, of course. But yeah, I mean, whatever happened, I’m glad it happened. That’s for sure.

Q:
JJ, I was wondering what your impressions of Cade’s comments after the game and he also said that his impression from your coach is that they don’t want to keep switching and when you think this experiment, whatever you want to call it might end?

McCarthy:
I actually didn’t see his postgame…but going to just not making that switch. I feel like that’s the best way to do it for the team. You know, I whatever Coach Harbaugh thinks, I’m right behind him and being on this football team last year it worked with the switching so like I said I’m whatever happens happens and I’m ready for it.

Thank you guys!

Edits made for clarity.

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